Meesho cuts 15% workforce; lays off 251 employees in restructuring exercise

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May 5, 2023

Meesho, an e-commerce startup, announced to its staff at a town hall meeting on Friday morning that it had fired 251 employees to become sustainable amid a larger industry reset in technology.

This would amount to 15% of the team’s overall strength.

“We have taken a difficult decision to part ways with 251 Meeshoites constituting 15% of the employee base, as we look to work with a leaner organisational structure to achieve sustained profitability,” the SoftBank-backed firm said in a statement.

Meesho cofounder & CEO Vidit Aatrey told employees in a note that the company made ‘judgment errors’ in over-hiring ahead of the curve. “At the same time, we could have run our org structure in a more effective and lean manner overall. Our spans and layers were inflated, and this could have unintended consequences on our speed to execute.”

“While we are confident that Meesho business will stay strong, the economic reality is here to stay. We are now faced with the hard truth of aligning our people costs with the new projections for our business,” he added.

“I want to reiterate that the decision around who is impacted has nothing to do with performance, and only to do with our business reality. That we are losing the best, hard-working talent as a result of this decision is not lost on me,” Aatrey told employees.

BluSmart raises $42mn to expand its EV operations in India

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May 4, 2023

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BluSmart Mobility, a leading provider of EV ride-hailing and charging, announced on Thursday that it raised $42 million in the recent round and will keep expanding on its goal of decarbonizing the country’s transportation system.

Existing energy investors participated in the latest round, which included an equity round of $37 million and a venture debt round of $5 million, with almost 50 percent of the round being subscribed by the BluSmart founders and leadership team.

BluSmart plans to have 10,000 EVs in its all-electric ride-hailing fleet by FY24, which currently consists of 3,500 EVs operating in Delhi-NCR and Bengaluru.

“The electrification of public transportation is imminent but the path to electrification has its own challenges. BluSmart tackles these challenges through an integrated and full-stack approach, optimally using and maintaining the EV ride-hailing fleet at scale,” said Anmol Singh Jaggi, Co-founder and CEO, BluSmart Mobility.

The monthly revenue for BluSmart has increased three times over the last three quarters, and to scale even further, this fundraising round will be used to expand the fleet’s capacity to 10,000 over the next year and further penetrate megacities.

A total of 5,000 EVs will be added to BluSmart’s growing fully-electric ride-hailing fleet due to the recent acquisition of the largest EV asset finance in India, valued at Rs 633 crore, backed by the Power Finance Corporation (PFC).

“We are focused on sustainability and profitability with a larger purpose to accelerate EV adoption and reverse climate change.” said Tushar Garg, Co-founder and Chief Business Officer, BluSmart Mobility.

BluSmart has raised $109 million in total across rounds, including $85 million in equity. Additionally, it has received EV asset leasing support totaling $150 million (roughly Rs 1,200 crore) from development financial institutions like PFC and IREDA, among others.

Fortune Hotels expands its presence in Punjab

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May 4, 2023

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Fortune Hotels, a member of ITC’s hotel group, continued the active expansion of its portfolio by signing yet another operating agreement for a new hotel in Amritsar – the golden city of Punjab. This hotel, expected to open in Q2 of FY 2023–24, will be the second one in Amritsar and the fourth alliance for the upscale chain in Punjab.

This city hotel in Ranjit Vihar has contemporary, well-appointed rooms and suites, a restaurant, a boardroom, a rooftop pool, event facilities and a stylish bar. It was built to accommodate the growing demand for MICE and social events in this region of the famed city.

Speaking on the occasion, Samir MC, Managing Director, Fortune Hotels, said, “Amritsar is a major cultural, administrative and economic centre of Punjab and holds immense potential for us. With a hotel near the Golden Temple, we were keen on adding another hotel in the midst of the city that would cater to the business and corporate clientele of the region, this city hotel would do just that. Offering a perfect mix of comfort, recreation, business-led facilities and food and beverage options, we are confident that the hotel will be a popular alternative for all city residents and business guests alike.”

ZestIoT bags $6.5mn in Series A round led by IvyCap Ventures

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May 4, 2023

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ZestIoT, an aviation platform, has secured USD 6.5 million (Rs 51 crore) in series A funding, led by IvyCap Ventures. Loyal VC also participated in the round. The company says that the fresh funds will be used to enhance the passenger experience and enable quicker turnaround of aircraft.

The Hyderabad-based company’s GroundRadar platform connects airlines, airports, and handlers to work together to speed up aircraft turnaround while ensuring operational efficiency and safety. According to ZestIoT, it manages more than 600 flights and equipment, and 9,000 personnel daily.

Speaking about the investment, Vikram Gupta, Founder and Managing Partner of IvyCap Ventures Advisors, expressed, “ZestIoT has pioneered the digitization of last-mile operations, utilizing its cutting-edge deep tech platform and niche solution to automate processes and deliver real-time insights. This provides airlines and airport operators with informed decisions to optimize their operations and improve efficiency. We firmly believe that ZestIoT has the potential to solve this problem at the grassroots level and emerge as a leader in this segment. We are thrilled to support their growth and assist them in becoming the largest player in this sector.”

Talking about their plan to utilize the raised fund, Amit Sukhija, Founder and CEO, ZestIoT, said, “This new investment will accelerate our mission to empower the aviation ecosystem with last-mile digitization and automation, delivering multiple use cases to airports, airlines, and handlers based on their individual journey of digitization. In addition, we’re extending our offering to the manufacturing industry, enabling customers to adopt our AI + IoT automation platform to produce high-quality products in a cost-effective manner while ensuring operational safety.”

Investments in drone startup companies are on the rise in India. Drone startup funding was about USD 49.7 million in the most recent fiscal year, compared to USD 25 million in FY22. Over the past three years, the segment has seen a 300 percent growth.

Nitin Kukreja joins as CEO of Allen Career Institute

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May 3, 2023

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Allen Career Institute Private Limited has announced the appointment of Nitin Kukreja as its new Chief Executive Officer.

Commenting on the appointment, Brajesh Maheshwari, Chairman of Allen Career Institute, said, “Nitin has been associated with Allen as a board member and made invaluable contributions in defining the strategic roadmap for Allen. We are excited to welcome and support him in the avatar of our Chief Executive Officer. Nitin is a values-driven leader with exceptional strategic capabilities and strong experience in scaling businesses. He will combine the two Ts of Teaching and Technology to offer outcome-driven learning to students. We look forward to Nitin helping realize the full potential of Allen’s pioneering position and its 35-year-old legacy.”

Allen Career Institute will focus on delivering a digital-first consumer experience at scale under Nitin’s leadership, expanding Allen’s reach from 3.0 lakh students to 2.5 crore students. Since announcing the strategic partnership with Bodhi Tree in April 2022, Allen has added top academic minds from major tech firms to its outstanding faculty. By the end of the year, Allen plans to increase the size of its Bangalore-based digital team to 200 people.

“I am thrilled to lead the transformational journey of Allen. Education has massive impact on the lives of learners and is an important contributor to nation-building. Allen has a legacy of delivering this impact to more than 28 lakh learners over the last 35 years. I firmly believe that technology can multiply Allen’s positive impact manifold. I look forward to building a future-ready Allen and deliver on the aspirations of crores of learners,” said Nitin Kukreja. “I’m confident that the Board’s vision, Allen’s brand and our strong team will help us tremendously in this journey.”

Nitin Kukreja has more than 20 years of experience in leadership, strategy, and investing roles in various sectors.

In his last role, he managed investments in consumer-tech companies at Marigold Park Capital Advisors (formerly Lupa Systems, India).

Before that, Nitin served as CEO of Star Sports, where he transformed the landscape of Indian sports broadcasting and elevated Star Sports to the top destination for sports fans.

Between 2007 and 2017, Nitin was associated with Star India and was a core leadership team member that drove the company’s growth into one of Asia’s biggest media companies. Mr Kukreja was recognized in the Economic Times and the Spencer Stuart list of “40 under 40: India’s Hottest Business Leaders under the age of 40”.

Nitin formerly worked for Morgan Stanley’s Private Equity division.

Healthcare startup Bonatra acquires MyAva

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May 3, 2023

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Healthcare startup Bonatra said it had acquired women’s health and wellness company MyAva for an undisclosed amount. The company stated that it aims to expand its holistic healthcare programmes with this acquisition and develop into a one-stop platform for managing chronic health conditions.

MyAva is a startup which empowers women to manage chronic health conditions like polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), thyroid disorders, insulin resistance and more.

Among other chronic diseases, Bonatra focuses on managing and treating diabetes, hypertension, fatty liver, PCOD, obesity, and other conditions.

“Acquiring MyAva enables us to expand our reach and deepen our expertise in women’s health,” Bonatra CEO and co-founder Rahul Kishore Singh stated.

According to MyAva founder and CEO Evelyn Immanuel, the move improves the goal of making chronic care management accessible to all women.

“We believe this further strengthens our combined commitment towards making femtech more inclusive and integrated,” she added.

Food-tech startup Pluckk acquires 100% stake in meal kit brand KOOK

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May 2, 2023

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Pluckk, a digital lifestyle-oriented fresh food brand in the fruits and vegetables (F&V) space, announced the acquisition of KOOK. This Indian food-tech startup offers a range of DIY meal kits at a deal value of $1.3 million. The acquisition was through a combination of cash and equity, the company said in a statement.

Cooking becomes easier for everyone with KOOK’s DIY ready-to-cook meal kits, with pre-portioned ingredients and simple instructions. KOOK has a significant presence in Delhi and Mumbai and is known for catering to various dietary choices and cooking skills.

“With KOOK’s strong target audience and expertise in meal kits, Pluckk is well-positioned to deliver the best quality fresh food to end-consumers in this thriving $15 billion market,” it said.

The acquisition will allow Pluckk to provide customers across India with an unbeatable farm-to-fork experience, according to Nelson D’Souza, CFO of Pluckk. KOOK has proven expertise in building a world-class product in the meal-kit space, and Pluckk’s commitment to providing safe and chemical-free produce will strengthen this expertise.

“In the post-covid world, ready to cook meal kits have emerged as a sought after cooking trend with customers preferring to control the quality of food consumed while having more dining options which we look to leverage by offering this differentiator to our customer experience,” said D’Souza.

“Further, from a unit economics point-of-view, this is a welcome addition to our portfolio and will help us accelerate our journey towards building a profitable business,” he added.

The statement said that Pluckk’s acquisition of KOOK is a strategic move to tap into the immense growth potential of the meal kit market and offers significant opportunities for Pluckk.

The global market is expected to increase by 20% from 2021 to 2025, from $15.21 billion to $31.5 billion.

“The synergies between what we are building at KOOK and the lifestyle-first approach that Pluckk brings to the fruits and vegetables category seem very compelling,” said KOOK’s co-founder, Arpitta Jerath.

“Our range of DIY meal kits, combined with Pluckk’s digital lifestyle-oriented brand, will allow us to offer even more convenience and healthy meal options to the discerning customers in the ever-growing markets Pluckk operates in.”

KOOK, co-founder, Nikhil Thatai said, “We estimate the market size of meal kits to be around $1 billion by 2025 in India and we look forward to leveraging our expertise in meal kit delivery to offer healthy and delicious meal options to cater to this booming market in our country.”

Nikhil and Arpitta, both ISB graduates, founded the DIY meal kit startup KOOK in 2020. With a presence in Delhi and Mumbai, KOOK was established to make cooking at home simple and hassle-free.

Pluckk provides a farm-to-fork product range for health-conscious consumers with safe and chemical-free produce with their ozone wash and traceability programme.

Customers have access to a wide choice of products beyond the basics, such as organic and exotic produce, and can buy based on food trends like gut health, heart health, and diabetes.

Pluckk’s products are available on their direct-to-consumer (D2C) platform and partner platforms like Blinkit, Swiggy, Zepto, Dunzo, and Amazon.

Pluckk offers various special gourmet fruits and vegetables directly to end-consumers, cutting out mediators. It was co-founded by Pratik Gupta and received seed funding from Exponentia Ventures (EV), with current operations in Bangalore and Mumbai.

Over 500 farmers from Mumbai and Bengaluru have already joined the platform, which hopes to sign up 1,000 more in the next six months.

Spree Hospitality signs new boutique hotel, Zip by Spree Hotels Morjim

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May 2, 2023

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Spree Hospitality has announced the signing of a new boutique hotel, Zip by Spree Hotels Morjim. This newest addition to the Spree Hospitality family will debut on June 1, 2023, and promises to offer exceptional hospitality in the stunning coastline town of Morjim, Goa.

Spree Hospitality, a part of EaseMyTrip‘s leading travel company, provides exceptional service, comfort, and elegance. Spree Hospitality currently manages over 30 hotels, clubs, and guesthouses across India. This quarter will see the launching of more than 7 hotels.

“We are delighted to announce the addition of Zip by Spree Hotels Morjim to our portfolio and are confident that it will become a sought-after destination for travelers seeking a luxurious and comfortable stay” said Sagar Khurana, vice-president of Spree Hospitality. “With its prime location, stunning view, comfort rooms and top-class facilities, we are confident that the hotel will exceed our guest’s expectations.”

The hotel is close to many of the town’s popular attractions and is located in the heart of Morjim. Guests can stroll along the beautiful Morjim beach, engage in water sports, or explore the local markets and cafes.

Zip by Spree Hotels Morjim boasts a range of top-class facilities to make a guest’s stay comfortable and memorable. Spacious rooms with balconies are available in the hotel, some of which have breathtaking views of Morjim beach. From the luxury of their private balconies, guests can soak up the sun and the fresh sea breeze.

The hotel also has an in-built restaurant and swimming pool to further enrich the guest experience. The restaurant will serve various delicious dishes inspired by local and international cuisines, while the swimming pool offers a cool respite from the beaches’ hot sun. A restro bar is perfect for enjoying a drink while socializing with family and friends.

Zip by Spree Hotels Morjim is a testament to Spree Hospitality’s commitment to providing top-class hospitality experiences to travellers. This hotel promises an unforgettable stay for every guest, whether looking for a romantic getaway, a family vacation, or a solo adventure.

Coworking spaces double in 4 years in India: Report

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May 2, 2023

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Coworking spaces are becoming increasingly popular among businesses in India, where demand has doubled in the last four years. A tremendous rise from 14% in Q1 2019 to 27% in Q1 2023, coworking spaces comprised a large portion of the 8.2 million sq ft of net absorption across the top seven cities.

In Q1 2023, Bengaluru and the National Capital Region (NCR) accounted for two-thirds of net coworking absorption, while Pune and Chennai absorbed roughly 0.52 million sq ft of coworking space. The top seven cities saw a 90% increase in net absorption of coworking spaces, increasing from 1.3 million sq ft in Q1 2019 to over 2.18 million sq ft in Q1 2023.

Following the pandemic, many companies, especially those in the IT and ITeS sectors, have chosen flexible workspaces over traditional offices. The appealing feature of coworking spaces is their variety of locations, such as residential areas, malls, and hotels, as well as their affordability compared to traditional offices with lengthy lock-in periods.

Low vacancy levels in Grade A offices have driven demand for coworking spaces in cities like Bengaluru, Chennai, and Pune. In contrast, in the Delhi-NCR region, low vacancy rates in commercial space have also fueled growth for coworking setups in areas like Gurugram and Noida.

“Coworking spaces demand weakened considerably after Covid-19 disrupted the workplaces equation across the country. We’re seeing a decisive reversal of this negative trend now, with coworking particularly attractive because of the disrupted IT/ITeS employment scenario,” said Utkarsh Kawatra, Senior Director – myHQ (ANAROCK Group).

The first quarter of 2023 witnessed a net office absorption of over 4.6 million sq ft in the southern cities of Bengaluru, Hyderabad, and Chennai, with coworking firms accounting for 26%. Coworking companies accounted for 24% of the net office space absorption in the Western markets of Mumbai Metropolitan Region and Pune, around 1.48 million sq ft. In Kolkata, coworking players accounted for 12% of the 0.25 million sq. ft. of office space consumed in Q1 2023. Coworking players made for 32% of the approximately 1.89 million sq. ft. of office spaces absorbed in NCR.

Amazon posts $3.2 billion profit as it goes through multiple layoffs

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May 1, 2023

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Amazon is back in the black to start the year. CNN Business reported on Friday that the e-commerce giant announced on Thursday a profit of USD 3.2 billion for the first quarter, greatly above analysts’ estimates.

The Seattle-headquartered firm reported a loss of USD 3.8 billion in the year-ago quarter.

The shift to a profit aligns with Amazon’s recent escalation of cost-cutting measures. According to CNN Business, the company has announced two waves of layoffs, eliminated products, and nixed physical store expansions.

Additionally, it comes as certain aspects of Amazon’s business continue to expand despite ongoing recession fears that could impact business and consumer spending.

Revenue for the business went up 9% from the same period last year. According to CNN Business, Amazon expects second-quarter net sales to increase by 5% and 10% from last year, or between USD 127 billion and USD 133 billion.

“The results indicate that ongoing cost-cutting measures are having a positive impact on Amazon’s business prospects,” said Jesse Cohen, senior analyst at Investing.com.” Amazon’s strong guidance for Q2 revenue is another indicator that the company may be starting to come out of the woods.”

Another positive sign for its overall business is that Amazon Web Services, which has traditionally been a source of profit for the company, had double-digit percentage growth during the quarter.

AWS segment sales rose 16 per cent from the year before to USD 21.4 billion, CNN Business said, adding, “That comes after sales growth slowed in the previous quarter, as cloud customers tightened their purse strings due to uncertainty about the economy’s health.”

“While our AWS business navigates companies spending more cautiously in this macro environment, we continue to prioritise building long-term customer relationships,” Chief Executive Officer Andy Jassy said in a statement accompanying the earnings release.

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